Its that time of year isn’t it, a season of cold, windy and rainy days. With more darkness than light
I love the cold sunny bright days with blue skies, but they are few and far between lately. And with wet and cold weather fronts battering our little house in the country it is feeling so wet and cold up here.
These days are not to be sniffed at thought, as those are the days I love to baton down the hatches, light the fire and enjoy a little family time. And with teens, these sorts of days are becoming less and less frequent.
A couple of weeks ago Joe had an unplanned school closure day. One of those days that school could not avoid! Which meant Joe got to stay home for the day. He had plans of a grand adventure, however I did have a little work to do. Which much to his disappointment gave him a little time to work on his homework before we hit the kitchen to make afternoon tea.
Having recently taken charge of the prettiest tea set from Laura Ashley I was dying to put it to good use, and afternoon tea is not just a summer thing is it?
It is also the perfect opportunity to enjoy soup, toast and cakes on a rainy autumn afternoon. I did cheat with the soup! This little lunch was all about the delicious desserts. And as we prepared chocolate dipped jumbo marshmallows in chocolate and sprinkles as we chatted and lost track of time.
I love those afternoons, where nothing else matters other than preparing a mini feast. Sometimes the preparation is just a rewarding as the eating, isn’t it? However I have to say the marshmallows were pretty spectacular, so easy to make and taste delicious.
We had also decided to give carrot cake a try, it’s a recipe we had not tried before, but who doesn’t love carrot cake. And it is perfect for autumn with its delicious spicy flavours. Although this and coffee cake are possible the only two cakes I CANNOT resist, which makes them very dangerous to have around.
Check my carrot cake recipe over on the Laura Ashley Blog, but if you love carrot cake beware these are hard to resist! Make them at your peril. But in my humble opinion this is exactly what rainy afternoons are for, family time and long lazy afternoon.
What a pretty tea set and those marshmallows and cake look delicious Sarah. I wish I could bake but I just don’t seem to have the patience. Love that you got to spend some one to one time with Joe, it;s definitely getting more and more precious as they grow older x
This would be my perfect way to spend a rainy day. I love baking and eating cakes and sweet treats, also I find it so calming just pottering around the kitchen. That Laura Ashley tea set is just gorgeous xx
Oh wow Sarah this looks delicious, you are making me hungry. George would love the marshmallows and I adore the tea set
Carrot cake is one of my favourites too – I’ve never thought of making them as muffins though, that’s a fab idea. I’m not usually a fan of afternoon tea but I kind of like the idea of a warming autumnal one.
This is gorgeous, I just love the print on your tea set!
You’ve inspired me to have a little tea party with mine. Love all the little things you’ve made to go along with it too xx